The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Author	Stephen Chbosky
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Young adult novel/Epistolatory novel
Publisher	MTV Books/Pocket Books
Publication date	1 February, 1999
Media type	Print (Paperback) and Audiobook
Pages	256 pp (first edition paperback)
ISBN	ISBN 0-671-02734-4 (first edition paperback)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is an epistolary novel written in the 1990s by American novelist Stephen Chbosky. The novel was published on February 1, 1999 by MTV. The story takes the form of a series of letters to an anonymous friend written by the narrator, a teenager who calls himself Charlie (his real name is never mentioned).

The story explores topics such as introversion, teenage sexuality, and the awkward times of adolescence. The book also touches strongly on drug use and Charlie's experiences with this. As the story progresses, various works of literature and film are referenced and their meanings discussed. The story takes place outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the 1991-1992 school year, when Charlie is a high school freshman. Charlie is the wallflower of the novel. He is an unconventional thinker, and as the story begins he is shy and unpopular. Chbosky names J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye as an inspiration,^[1] and he pays homage to Salinger's work by naming it as one of Charlie's mother's favorite books. Chbosky wrote The Perks of Being a Wallflower in his spare time while writing a screenplay for Columbia Pictures. As of December 2005, Chbosky has been working on a screenplay for the novel. ^[2]

Contents 1 Character histories 2 Charlie's lists 2.1 Books 2.2 Films 2.3 Songs 3 References

Character histories

Charlie - The main character of the novel. He is an intelligent, caring, and observant high school freshman. This book is about his coming of age and his transformation from a person who simply observes to one who participates. He considers himself "pretty emotional". Patrick - A high-school senior who befriends Charlie and becomes one of his best friends. Charlie later discovers that Patrick is gay and in love with Brad. Plays 'Frank N Furter' at the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Sam - Patrick's stepsister and also a senior in high school. Charlie is deeply in love with Sam and considers her his best friend. Sam gives Charlie his first kiss, saying that she wanted it to come from someone who loved him. Plays 'Janet Weiss' at the local Rocky Horror Picture Show. Mary Elizabeth - Sam's good friend, a very outspoken senior who publishes a fanzine called "Punk Rocky". She dates Charlie, but Charlie's heart is not in it because of his love for Sam. In charge of the Rocky Horror Picture Show viewings where she plays 'Magenta'. Bill - Charlie's English teacher. He pushes Charlie to participate rather than observe and gives him books to read. Charlie confides in him when his sister is hit by her boyfriend. He takes a special interest in Charlie and is one of the few who see how special and intelligent Charlie is, telling him so as they part for summer vacation. Brad - Patrick's boyfriend, the closeted quarterback of the high school football team. Charlie meets him at a party, the only place where Brad feels comfortable being with Patrick. Charlie's sister - A popular, attractive, and intelligent girl whose feelings for Charlie vary throughout the book. She gets herself into a lot of trouble with boys and Charlie helps her out. She is very opinionated. Charlie's brother - Attends Penn State on a football scholarship. He is very talented and calm. Charlie's father - A stern man who had a tough upbringing but genuinely loves his kids and wants what is best for them. Because of the abuse he suffered as a child, he has promised himself that he will never hit his children. Charlie's mother - A woman who was beaten by her father when she was young. She justifies this by stating that he wanted her to have an education and a better life than he did; beating her up was his way of enforcing that. Aunt Helen - The sister of Charlie's mother, killed in a car accident on Dec. 24, a snowy evening and Charlie's birthday. As a child she was molested by a family friend. For the last few years of her life she lived with Charlie's family. Charlie feels guilty because Aunt Helen died on her way to buy Charlie a birthday present. Michael - Charlie's friend from middle school who committed suicide because of "problems at home." Charlie misses him greatly and has trouble dealing with his death. Susan - A girl who was friends with Charlie when Michael was still living. She and Michael used to hold hands at the football games. Later (after Michael's death), as she physically matures and becomes more attractive, she does not pay any attention to Charlie and at times actively ignores him. Craig - Sam's older college boyfriend from the middle of the novel onwards, who Sam later finds out has cheated on her multiple times. Peter - Mary Elizabeth's love interest after she and Charlie become "just friends again". A friend of Craig's. Bob- Charlie's drug dealing, pothead friend. With a bubbly personality and a lot of trivia knowledge, which apparently gets stale after a while (Charlie had heard all of his jokes and trivia in a week).

Charlie's lists

Books

In the novel Charlie's teacher, Bill, assigns him various books to read. Charlie describes them all as his favorites.

• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• A Separate Peace by John Knowles
• The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
• On the Road by Jack Kerouac
• Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
• Walden by Henry David Thoreau
• Hamlet by William Shakespeare
• The Stranger by Albert Camus
• The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

The book also references The Mayor of Castro Street by Randy Shilts

Films

The novel references these films:

• Rocky Horror Picture Show
• The Graduate
• Harold and Maude
• My Life as a Dog
• Dead Poets Society
• The Unbelievable Truth
• A Perfect Paradise
• It's a Wonderful Life
• Reds
• The Producers

Songs

The novel references these songs:

• "Asleep" by The Smiths
• "Vapour Trail" by Ride
• "Scarborough Fair" by Simon and Garfunkel
• "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum
• "Time of No Reply" by Nick Drake
• "Dear Prudence" by The Beatles
• "Gypsy" by Suzanne Vega
• "Nights in White Satin" by The Moody Blues
• "Daydream" by The Smashing Pumpkins
• "Dusk" by Genesis
• "MLK" by U2
• "Blackbird" by The Beatles
• "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac
• "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana
• "Another Brick in the Wall Pt. II" by Pink Floyd
• "Something" by The Beatles

Charlie also mentions M*A*S*H (TV series)

References